Drawing Closer To God

The Place Called Presence

 

We find an interesting story early in the Gospel of John.  Jesus meets several of the men who would later become the apostles.  He first meets Andrew and John.  Andrew is so excited, about finding the Messiah, he goes and gets his brother; Peter.  Jesus then meets Philip, who is also excited about meeting Jesus, he goes and finds his friend Nathanael and brings Nathanael to Jesus.  Here is where it gets interesting.  Listen to Nathanael's encounter with Jesus. 

 

John 1:43-49 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee.  Finding Philip, he said to him, "Follow me".  Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida.  Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote-- Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."  "Nazareth!  Can anything good come from there?"  Nathanael asked.  "Come and see," said Philip.  When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false".  "How do you know me?"  Nathanael asked.  Jesus answered, "I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you".  Then Nathanael declared, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel."

 

Why do you suppose Nathanael believed in Jesus simply because Jesus said he had seen him under the fig tree?  I don't know.  The Bible doesn't say.  But something significant happened to Nathanael under the fig tree.  I can't help it; let's speculate.  Nathanael may have been struggling with a personal crisis.  I see Nathanael wrestling with some moral dilemma.  It must have had something to do with his integrity because Jesus said, "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false."  "How do you know me?"  "I saw you under the fig tree."  Nathanael may have been trying to make a decision, get out the easy way; don't stand up for what is right; things will be better if you just don't rock the boat.  NO!  It's not right.  It's not honest.  I will do what is right.  I suspect Nathanael decided and left the tree determined to keep his integrity.  Then Nathanael is stunned when Jesus knew about his struggle; his decision under the fig tree.

 

Jesus was there with Nathanael in his struggle.  Jesus was like a dragonfly sitting on a blade of grass watching him; listening to his struggle; wrestling with Nathanael.  Perhaps Nathanael even sensed Jesus' presence.  When Nathanael realizes Jesus was the one who was there, he falls down and proclaims, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel". 

 

This morning, in our metaphorical cruise we are traveling to a Place called…  Presence.  What we want to discover, in the Place called Presence, is what Nathaniel discovered.  We want to experience Jesus, with us.  When we sit under the fig tree of decision we want to feel the presence of Jesus like a dragonfly sitting beside us.  

 

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Here is the exciting part.  It can happen.  God invites us into his presence.

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The heart of God is open.  The Heavenly Father aches over our distance.  He shakes his head in disappointment with our preoccupation with this world.  He mourns that we do not draw near to him.  He grieves that we only, occasionally, consult with Him.  He weeps over our obsession with much and many.  He longs for our presence.  God is jealous of our attention.  But like two year olds our attention span is measured in seconds.  "It is just too hard to live in this Place called Presence?"

 

But the good news is God invites us to into his presence.  God offers an invitation to come to his house.  He wants us to come home, where our hearts belong.  His arms are stretched out wide as he opens the front door of his home, "Come in!  Come in!  Welcome!"

 

 We don't need to be shy. 

-He invites us into his home.  He invites us to take off our coats and stay a while.

- He invites us into the living room of his heart, where we can take off our shoes and sit back in the recliner and chat with our Host. 

- He invites us into the kitchen of his friendship, where we can be with him, while he cooks. 

- He invites us into the dining room of his blessings, where we can feast at the banquet of his love. 

-He invites us into the study of His wisdom, where we can learn and grow and stretch and ask all the questions we want.

-He invites us into his workshop of creativity, where we can be co-laborers; working together to determine the outcome of the world.

-And he invites us into the bedroom of his rest, where peace is found.

 

Let's join David in the 84th Psalm.  Read it with me.

 

Psalm 84:1-4 How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD Almighty!  My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.  Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young-- a place near your altar, O LORD Almighty, my King and my God.  Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you.

 

We need not be shy.  Our Host welcomes us into his home!

 

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The key to the front door of God's house is prayer. 

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-Perhaps, you have never prayed.  The only time the name of God has been on your lips has been as a curse.  Even if you have no idea how to approach the throne of God, he welcomes you to talk to him.

-Perhaps, you do not believe in prayer.  You tried it.  It didn't work.  So, now you don't bother.  You seem to have little or no faith.  Don't despair.  God welcomes you into his home.

-Perhaps, you are bruised and broken, by life.  Things are pitiful in your life.  You have old, painful memories that have never healed.  You avoid prayer because you feel too distant and too defiled.  But don't give up God wants your wrongs and asks you to bring them with you.

-Perhaps, you prayed for many years but lately the words have grown brittle.  Little happens when you pray.  So, you pray little.  God seems remote.  His offer is still there.

-Perhaps, sin has driven a wedge between you and God.  A persistent nagging addictive vice has made prayer seem… hypocritical.  And so you have stopped.  In spite of your sin, even because of your sin, God wants you to return to him.  He wants to give you healing.  He offers forgiveness.

-Perhaps, you want to pray.  Every time you think about it you recommit to spend more time in prayer.  You wake up each morning determined to spend an hour in prayer some time during the day, but the "sometime" rarely, if ever happens.  When you do block out the time to pray, after a few requests and a couple "Thank Yous", you have nothing to say.  Like a teenager on a first date you struggle for what to say and come up empty.  You wonder how in the world Jesus could spend the night in prayer.  You go to bed most nights discouraged at your lack of discipline.  Don't give up God invites you and your lack of discipline into his house.

-Perhaps prayer is the delight of your life.  You have lived in the divine presence for a long time.  You can attest to His goodness.  Because you have been there for so long, you desire more of his presence.  You want to see the dragonfly under the fig tree.  God invites you to come deeper into his presence.

 

Wherever you are in your prayers, God invites you into his house.  Prayer is living in the house of God. 

 

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Perhaps, that is what I am trying to say in this sermon.

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Prayer is more than a wish list.  Prayer is more than thank you notes to God.  Prayer is more than a duty we ought to do because we are Christians.  "Christians are commanded to pray."  Prayer is more than checking a box on a to do list.  Prayer is more than something you say before a meal.  Prayer is more than what we do at church.  Prayer is living at God's house.  "Hey, where do you live?"  "I live at God's house." 

 

That is what I am saying in this sermon and what I am going to be saying in the next several sermons.  Guess what?  We are going to be staying in the Place called Presence, for a while.  It may be prayer is the key to all the other places on our metaphorical cruise.  It may be prayer is how we experience all the places on our cruise.  So, for the next few weeks we are going to be exploring this bigger idea of what prayer is.  Prayer is this bigger idea which goes beyond wish lists and thank you notes.  I want to impress upon me and you that prayer is living in the presence of God.  "Hey, where do you live?"  "I live at God's house." 

 

John 14:23 Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching.  My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him."

 

Prayer is living at God's house!

 

Listen to a quote from Richard Foster.  This quote is from "Prayer: Finding the Heart's True Home".  Many of my thoughts today are taken from this book.

 

Healthy prayer necessitates frequent experiences of the common, earthy, run-of-the-mill variety.  Like walks, and talks, and good wholesome laughter.  Like work in the yard, and chitchat with the neighbors, and washing windows.  Like loving our spouse, and playing with our kids, and working with our colleagues.  To be spiritually fit to scale the Himalayas of the spirit, we need regular exercise in the hills and valleys of ordinary life.

 

Healthy prayer is like ordinary living only we do it in God's house.  We share our everydays with God.

 

 

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Let's go back to the fig tree.

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When Nathanael realized Jesus had been with him under the fig tree, he proclaimed, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel".  Then Jesus made a promise to Nathanael, which, I think, he will make to us when we realize Jesus is the dragonfly under the fig tree.

 

John 1:50-51 Jesus said, "You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree.  You shall see greater things than that."  He then added, "I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man." 

 

When we live with the presence of Jesus under the fig tree, then, we are open to experience the works of heaven! 

 

Tim Stidham

Los Alamos Church of Christ

March 27, 2011